Big Brothers Big Sisters rocked out while bowling on April 5 at the Big Country Lanes bowling alley for their Fourth Annual Bowl for Kids Sake fundraiser.
“It was very successful. Everyone had lots of fun. The enthusiasm was very high and people really leaned into the theme and were dressed up. It was very entertaining,” said Kira Thomas, the mentoring coordinator for the Big Brothers Big Sisters of South Cariboo.
This year’s theme was Peace, Love and Rock n’ Roll and had about 14 teams come out during three separate time frames. Collectively, the event has raised over $9,000.
“Every year now the event continues to grow in terms of funds raised, team participation and enthusiasm, so not only is it a great successful fundraiser to support the programs here in the South Cariboo but a great community awareness piece as well,” said Thomas.
Most of the competition, Thomas said, came in the form of the costumes rather than the bowling.
“We had hippies dressed up, lots of tie-dyes, some 80s rock bands. We had some rockabilly, like vintage rock and roll outfits. It really was a lot of fun.”
It was also the first time the event was on a Friday and in three time frames. Thomas said it was a successful format due to people just getting off work and still in town. For the most part, she says, it worked well for the community. It is likely the same format will be used again next year, which will have a different theme.
“We’re still waiting for the final word for the theme for next year,” Thomas said.
The money raised will go into helping deliver programs Big Brothers Big Sisters offer, such as the in-school mentoring program and as well as the traditional community matches.
According to Thomas, the program has three traditional community matches with a fourth one in the works over the past 14 months. She also added there are potentially more to come throughout the summer.
The in-school mentoring program has also been running for the past four years.
